Tinubu pushes for revival of regional standby force

President Bola Tinubu has urged West African and Sahel countries to revive a regional standby force as part of renewed efforts to confront worsening security threats across the region.

Nigeria’s position was presented by the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, at a high-level security conference in Accra, Ghana, held from 29 to 30 January 2026.

In a statement issued in Abuja on Saturday, Tinubu reaffirmed Nigeria’s commitment to regional peace and called for deeper cooperation among affected states.

“Nigeria is favourably disposed to more collaborative and multilateral approaches aimed at dealing with the security crisis in the Sahel,” the President said.

Tinubu proposed that Nigeria’s National Counter Terrorism Centre (NCTC) in Abuja be utilised as a regional hub for intelligence coordination and joint operations, noting that the centre had strengthened partnerships with African and regional security bodies.

“The centre is therefore well positioned to support regional mechanisms and serve as an intelligence coordinating hub in our unified counter-terrorism efforts,” he added.

The President also expressed concern over the growing exploitation of cyberspace by terrorist groups for propaganda and disinformation, urging neighbouring states to tap into Nigeria’s cyber-monitoring infrastructure.

“Security cooperation remains central to Nigeria’s national interest and regional stability,” Tinubu said, stressing that intelligence sharing and joint operations were essential to combating terrorism and organised crime.

He warned that gaps in security coordination had enabled militants to expand from the Sahel into coastal West Africa.

“These power vacuums have afforded Sahel-based terrorists the freedom to expand their activities from the central Sahel to littoral West Africa,” he said.

Tinubu further cautioned that drug trafficking networks could form alliances with insurgent groups, describing the trend as a serious threat to regional stability.

Calling for political differences to be set aside, the President urged ECOWAS and AES states to rebuild trust and adopt an inclusive security framework that addresses both immediate threats and the root causes of instability.